WATCH: Jaecoo J7 stacking-up to be a segment surprise

Ahead of its local market launch next month, Chery-owned Jaecoo provided a first official driving experience of the new J7 at a preview event outside Lanseria this past Thursday.

The first of three planned Jaecoo models for South Africa – the others being a plug-in hybrid and, towards the end of the year, the flagship six-seat J8, the J7 made its official showing at the Shanghai Auto Show last year as part of the unveiling of the Jaecoo brand itself.

Cool hunter

Confirmed for South Africa not long after, with its moniker being a combination of the German word for hunter (jäger) and cool, the J7 conforms to a styling language called Rock in River, which is attributed to its focus on being an SUV for all occasions and terrain.

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Spied for the first time on local soil last month, the J7’s array of selectively detailed features will be split across three trim levels Jaecoo did provide more, if not full, details of at the event.

Trim choices and power

Sampled for the first time on a model-specific gravel course in China last year as part of Chery’s New Journey, New Life International User Summit, the model range comprises two two-wheel-drive models called Vortex and Glacier, and the flagship all-wheel-drive dubbed Inferno.

Known by now is that the J7 will be offered with a single powertrain not available in the Chinese-market model, but underneath the bonnet of its Chery-badged twin, the Tansuo 06.

Shared with the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max and Tiggo 8 Pro, the engine in question is the 1.6 T-GDI that sends 145kW/290Nm to the front or all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

As a reminder, the plug-in hybrid South Africa will receive gets the smaller 1.5 T-GDI from the regular Tiggo 7 Pro, albeit combined with 19.27-kWh lithium-ion battery pack for a total system output varying from 180kW/510Nm to 240kW/545Nm depending on the market sales takes place in.

Spec

Set to be sold alongside sister brand Omoda in a separate capacity from Chery, the drive around Lanseria and into the Cradle of Humankind also involved a rocky off-road section in which the J7 performed surprisingly well given its lack of a low range transfer case.

For the tar driving part of the event at just over 70 km, the pair of front-wheel-drive models were provided, with the mid-range Glacier being the selected variant.

Distinguished from the Vortex by its 19-inch alloy wheels versus 18-inch, the Glacier, and by extension the Inferno, also gets the bigger 14.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, ventilated, heated and electric front seats, a 1.1m panoramic sunroof and a dashcam.

Carried over from the the Omoda C9 is the so-called Boss seat which allows rear passengers to move the front passenger’s seat forward for more legroom.

Notable items on the Vortex is the smaller 13.2-inch display offered on China, and features also standard on the Glacier and Inferno, namely a 50-watt wireless smartphone charger, a 360-degree surround-view camera system, nine-speaker Sony sound system, multi-function steering wheel and expansive array of safety and driver assistance systems.

Reserved for the Inferno is a heated steering wheel and a drive mode selector with seven settings; Eco, Normal, Sport, Snow, Mud, Sand and Off-Road – only the former trio are available on the Vortex and Glacier.

Elsewhere, the J7 gets dual-zone climate control with rear vents, Adaptive Cruise Control and a transparent underbody camera that proved more than useful on the off-road section.

The drive

On-road

On-tar drive, the J7 proved to be a mixed bag for the same reasons that continue to blight most vehicles originating from the People’s Republic.

With A-grade refinement luminary with premium and soft-touch levels of fit-and-finish, the accelerator calibration requires some fine-tuning as the smallest of inputs results in the turbo spooling up so quickly that wheel spin is a sure bet every time you set off.

Although no qualms include the engine itself, the oversensitive throttle also hampers the shifting of the dual-clutch ‘box.

Quick to respond when shifting down, the transmission’s programming sees it quickly shifting to second gear, where it stays for too long before eventually hooking third.

Even more bizarre are the mode selector’s set-up in which Eco felt more like Comfort in terms of response, and Sport somewhere in the middle instead of being at the top.

In addition, the ride felt a lot firmer than a comparative Korean, Japanese or German SUV, though the steering is on par if a little on the artificial side.

While the throttle and transmission worries can most likely be resolved via a few software tweaks, the biggest annoyance remains the overzealous safety systems.

As understandable as their functions are, not at least given the severe backlash early Chinese cars received for their lack of safety, the systems, especially the Lane Departure Warning and horizontal cabin sensor on the steering column, were simply too overbearing

Fortunately though, some can be be switched off by means of the infotainment system, but will require over-and-above input once the ignition is switched off and then on.

The infotainment display itself meanwhile also requires familiarisation, but will eventually become a doddle to use with an almost endless array of functions available.

For the rest, the J7 is suitably impressive with ample space for front and rear passengers, a capacious boot and as mentioned, quality materials from the piano-key like accents on the dashboard, to the rugged and robust plastic on top.

Off-road

A styling success, especially when finished in the darker hues, the off-road venture did elicit some concerns, not only due to the lack of low range, but also apparent ground clearance restrictions.

Lacking any form of air suspension and only resplendent with the mode selectors, the J7’s clearance is reported to be around the 180 mm mark rather than the 200 mm in China.

With Off-Road mode selected, it copped well with the rocky terrain and remained comfortable despite getting stuck once as a result of its driver not applying enough throttle on a particularly bad section where sharp rocks were threatening to leave their marks on the front skidplate.

While nowhere near a hardcore off-roader, the commendable performance and revised suspension saw the J7 actually feeling better off-road than it did on-road.

More soon

Set to throw a proverbial spanner in the segment works, the Jaecoo J7’s biggest crunch factor will be its price.

A topic of secrecy at the preview drive, expectations point to a starting sticker of around the R650 000 to R700 000 mark when taking into account the looming hybrid models and J8 that could, in theory, test the R800 000 to R900 000 limit when it goes on-sale.

As mentioned, all will be revealed within the next few weeks.  

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